Between Worlds: Hunted
by SRona58
Summary: "Jurassic World can recover, and I am Claire." Owen stared at her in bewilderment. "Do you do this every time you have to talk to someone?" Set immediately after Jurassic World - Claire and Owen return to Isla Nublar with Lowery to secure what's left of the park. Claire/Owen / Clawen
1. Prologue

For survival - that was what they had both agreed on as the boat made its way across the sea to return the passengers to their homeland.

Claire shifted anxiously against the railing at the edge of the deck outside, letting the sunlight reflect on her sweaty, dirt clad skin; the reminders of the previous night's events were still painted on her as thick as ever. She had gone from running the world's most famous amusement park to what would be the paparazzi's focus by the time they made landfall. Even with a boat-full of people that they had saved, she would never find a career that would take her seriously again. Slowly, she pushed away the torturous daydreams of the ghostly white dinosaur that now haunted her and took a deep breath. _You saved these people_ , she silently reminded herself.

"Looks like your nephews are doing okay," a voice interrupted her.

Claire forced a smile as she gave speechless agreement to the man standing next to her. Owen had walked out of the busy main hull with her after her sister had found the red head and the boys. Though he hadn't been there to hear the conversation, the hug the two shared was enough to let him know Claire was forgiven.

The woman straightened herself out and stood tall again, putting her guard back up. She glanced at Owen, who was leaning over the rail; his green eyes were focused on her, his lips curved in a smirk as he watched her desperately try to straighten her hair and pull herself together for the first time since the evacuation.

"Who're you trying to impress?" he goaded.

"Despite what happened, I am still the face of Jurassic World, Mr. Grady," she snapped. Then, she blushed and dropped her eyes to the floor. "Sorry..."

Owen's smirk widened into a full-fledged smile as he watched her struggle. He stood up and stepped closer to the woman he had spent the last day with, towering over her.

"You look fine," he promised. His hands rested on her shoulders.

Claire tried to think of anything else to keep her from dreading the media interviews coming up. Thankfully, she didn't have to think hard. Owen pulled her into a tight hug, letting her rest her head against his chest. She breathed in, wanting to drown in their embrace and hide from the real world for as long as they could.

"How about you make another round while I grab us some water?" she heard Owen huff into her hair.

She pulled away from his arms, cocking an eyebrow at him. "That's hardly an ideal first date."

He grinned again. "I'll remember to leave the tequila at home this time."

Claire nodded, accepting his offer, but her small smile faded as soon as he turned to head back inside.

"Owen?" she called.

"Yeah?"

She focused on the floor with tired eyes. "What do you think will happen to them?"

"To who?" he asked, rare concern plastered on his face.

"The dinosaurs. The one's left on the island. Blue, the T-Rex...we can't just leave them there, or-"

Before she could finish releasing her thoughts, she heard a click and static from the walkie talkie still attached to her hip. While she was fidgeting around in her torn apart clothing to find where it attached to her, faint words echoed through to them from a familiar voice.

"Remind me to retire this shirt," it spoke.

Claire grasped the receiver urgently and held down her button to speak.

"Lowery?! Lowery is that you?"

"It's me," the voice confirmed.

Her shoulders fell back in relief. "Are you on the boat?"

"Well, funny story..." he began. "The power's been out until now. Got the generator running, but I didn't realize you guys were taking off in the last helicopter. Any chance you can swing back around? Maybe sometime, you know...soon? Like before I get eaten?"

"Helicopter?" Claire heard Owen mutter, repeating what Lowery had just told them.

"N-no," Claire stuttered back. "What helicopter? We're on the boat. Didn't you board with the last of us?"

They waited for his explanation in silence. Claire looked towards Owen for help; her mind was still racing from the ups and downs of everything that had happened. She could've sworn Lowery was accounted for before they left.

"Lowery, can you hear me?" Claire asked again, becoming more panicked from his lack of response.

Finally, static came through, followed by some split up words. The connection was weakening the further in the opposite direction they went.

"Didn't know they took you on another shuttle out. I'm still...Nublar...another round of storms is coming...overnight..."

"Lowery, you're breaking up; we can't hear you!" Claire shouted. Her hands gripped the piece of machinery tightly, her knuckles turning white, as she waited to hear back from her employee.

After several long seconds, the connection came back in long enough for him to explain to her what he was looking at.

"You sure you guys aren't on that chopper?" he asked nervously.

"Pretty sure," Owen tossed in with heavy sarcasm. His eyes scanned the skies above the ocean around them for any sign of movement.

"Well someone is," Lowery spoke again. "And their signal is coming from...about 70 miles out..."

Claire's heart wildly searched for an answer as she took in what he was saying, but she couldn't speak.

"Any chance it's headed west?" Owen interrupted.

Claire watched him, mouth agape as she realized what he was suggesting. "We have to go back," she whispered quite a few times out loud before convincing herself it was the right decision. "We're coming back. Once this ship gets us to land I'll have them fly us back out. Don't change locations!"

"And go outside with that crazy raptor you want to call a friend?" the man thought over. "No, thanks."

"Watch who you're callin' crazy!" Owen demanded, ready to rip the walkie talkie from Claire's hands after he insulted Blue.

"Don't go anywhere!" Claire repeated one more time. "And keep an eye on that chopper."

Lowery agreed, though he had several more questions that he would have to wait to get an answer to; they would be returning soon enough.

Carefully, Claire eased her back against the ship's walls and sunk down to the ground, placing her head between her knees. _It's_ not _over,_ her thoughts screamed. _You have to go back_.


	2. Chapter 1

When the sun began to set, the barge finally made landfall, providing a final and true escape to the families who had been caught up in the events on Isla Nublar; the relief spread quickly on their faces as they scrambled to put their feet on dry, dinosaur-less land. The tourists could easily put it behind them, but Claire was well aware of the hell they were about to throw themselves back into.

Owen had managed to pull Claire from her state of emotional decay, dragging her inside again to spend more time with her family – if she hadn't known the kids' ages, there was no way she had visited her sister in a long while, either, so family time would be good. He left her in their comfort while beginning to make rounds and check on those he could help with while they were still pushing forward.

Every so often, Claire would glance up like she had when she first spotted Owen, sharing a forced smile with him. It was odd to her how close they had become in just a few days, but she was glad he was there to prevent her from losing all sanity. After all, how often does someone get to run through a jungle in the middle of the night with a couple of extremely large and toothy carnivores?

"So who is he?" she heard her sister chime in once the boys had fallen back asleep on her lap.

Claire looked blankly at Karen. Her lack of words proved how tired she was, but she didn't dare sleep. She was being haunted by the idea of Lowery being stuck on the island with no way out.

"Claire?" Karen asked, snapping in front of her sister's face.

She focused her attention. "He works-" she began, then corrected herself. " _Worked_ with me."

Karen frowned while Claire glanced back at Owen again. He was crouched down in front of a small girl, holding a cup of water out for her.

"And you're sure that's all?" Karen brushed off her sister's melancholy expressions.

"He's aunt Claire's boyfriend," a small voice mumbled from below them.

Karen giggled while she brushed some of Gray's hair aside and he shifted back into sleep. "Oh, is he now?" she asked, knowing it would embarrass her sister. "Care to fill me in?"

The red head smirked, looking at the floor. "Remember when you called me about mom and I told you about that mess of a date I agreed to?"

" _That's_ the tequila man? With the raptors?!"

Claire nodded sheepishly. "That's the one…"

"He's _cute_. What on Earth happened?! Last I heard you hated his guts."

Claire shuddered as she had a flashback to the past day. Briefly, she remembered meeting Owen at his mess of a bungalow on the island's shore, then their encounter with the I-Rex in Paddock 11. Next, the dark images of the raptors next to Owen's motorcycle took over, followed by the snapping of a thousand teeth on leather-like skin. A shudder escaped her body, forcing her back into reality.

"Hey," her sister spoke calmly, rest a hand on her sibling's shoulder. "It's okay, that's over with."

 _But it's not_ , Claire thought to herself. "Tell me about you two," she demanded, a bit of the original Claire coming back out as she sat up a little straighter. She motioned to the boys' father who was sitting back with headphones in, still recovering from their initial shock.

Karen followed her gaze. "I'm not sure. We're working on things. He's going to take the boys for a few days…I thought maybe we could have some sister time now that you're coming home."

Claire frowned internally, knowing she wouldn't be back on main land for long.

Then, Karen went back to patting Gray's head, showing her relief and love for her sons. "You know, it's not too late to have your own."

"Do you really still think that's a good idea?"

"Why, because you work with dinosaurs?" her sister questioned sarcastically. "You just saved all of these people. Plus, you got a guy who can control those things. If kids are safe with anyone, it would be you."

Claire didn't agree in the slightest, but gave silent approval to end the discussion. However, the last thing she wanted to feel after her sister's words was the shudder of the boat as the engines slowed down and they pulled into port.

From her side, she heard a huff as Owen sat down on the bench next to her. His face was serious and was still powdered in dirt and swear, but gentle.

"Death toll isn't too high," he casually informed her in a quiet whisper.

Claire shivered as she pictured the black body bags from the few victims they had lost in the early morning hours. Thankfully, there weren't too many, but four was four more than she could handle.

Owen rested his hand on her knee, making her skin feel warm under his touch. She barely had time to focus on anything while they were running across the island, but now that she had time to concentrate, she caught herself blushing easier than expected. Claire closed her eyes momentarily, then met his comforting green eyes, a sparkle of amusement lurking somewhere in their depths.

"And the press?" Claire finally managed, going over what information she would be sharing in her head.

"Very present. Just stick to the basics. The Indominus has been dealt with and the island is secure. We'll figure out the rest later."

Claire nodded.

"Hey," Owen whispered again, grabbing her attention back. "You'll be fine."

Claire faked a smile before standing up to take another walk outside. She let Owen's hand fall off her leg, clearly too focused on her own thoughts for manners, as she clung to her jacket and held it safely around her shoulders.

"And you must be Mr. Grady," Karen welcomed as the man followed her with his eyes. "Excuse my sister. If you haven't noticed yet, she's pretty set in her ways."

"Ain't that the truth…" Owen turned towards Karen with a lopsided grin and held out his hand for a greeting. "It's Owen."

" _Owen_ ," she corrected softly. "You like her, don't you?"

"Something like that," he replied. He shifted his focus onto Karen and her boys. "These two made it out cause of her."

Karen smiled. "And you."

Owen held her gaze before accepting her disguised thank you. Then, his mind wandered back to Isla Nublar. He dreaded the thought of being caught in something that dangerous again, but he knew Blue was still out there, just as Lowery had reminded them. As much as he didn't want to go back into that prehistoric war zone, those raptors were the only part of _his_ family he had left. Without Jurassic World, he was lost.

* * *

"The Indominus Rex…In-Dom-In-Ous…Indominus…"

Claire repeated the name of the hybrid dinosaur Ingen had created over and over, emphasizing the syllables to make sure she didn't forget how to speak during her interview. In just a few moments, she would be stepping up to a podium for an address to the press – though her hair and face still bore the signs of the struggle to get safely out of the park, her professional mentality still prevailed when she knew she had to prepare to speak to the public.

Owen rolled her eyes as the girl dusted off his vest, as though it would make him look more presentable. Her shoulders were rolled back with a dignity she hadn't shown since boarding the boat.

"The Indominus is an Ingen created dinosaur, there were limited casualties, Isla Nublar is in quarantine, Jurassic World can recover." She repeated the last part a second time, as though trying to convince herself of its truth. "Jurassic World _can_ recover, and I am Claire."

Owen stared at her in bewilderment. "Do you do this every time you have to talk to someone?"

Claire shot him a side glare as she took a breath and followed a police escort to the podium set in front of the barge. Flashing cameras and microphones were held up, ready to take her brief statement.

"Jurassic World is now closed to the public," Claire began, trying to steady her voice. She gripped the edge of the podium for stability. "As many of you know, a genetically mutated dinosaur that was created by Ingen as an asset to the park escaped her enclosure early yesterday morning. Approximately 24,856 people were brought back on this barge, myself included."

Almost immediately, she was cut off by questions.

"Over 25,000 people were in that park yesterday – what happened to the other 144?"

Claire's stomach dropped. Had 144 people really lost their lives in just a little over 24 hours? She lowered her head, but answered the question.

"What we know as of right now is that four people were lost after the evacuation."

"So you're confirming that 140 people are still stuck on the island?" another reporter asked urgently.

Claire held her breath, still shamed by that number. More questions flew.

"How would you compare this to the events of the original Jurassic Park?"

"Can Jurassic World recover from this?"

"Why wasn't there a better evacuation system put into effect as soon as you knew there was an emergency situation?"

Claire looked up into their camera flashes and greedy faces, too upset with herself to answer. Of course she blamed herself for everything, but should she admit to that on national TV? She turned to Owen, who stood with his hands clasped in front of him on the side stage, desperately searching for help.

Reluctantly, he stepped up. "Claire shut down everything north of the park and brought the guests in until the boats came by. What else should she have done? Thrown them in the ocean?"

Before the media attacked him as well, Claire interrupted. "We followed safety protocol by the book and—"

It was no use.

"Mr Grady, is it true you _trained_ some of the dinosaurs?"

"Is it true you used dinosaurs to solve your problem with the bigger dinosaur?"

"Will the military be stepping in now that the island is vacant?"

Claire felt nausea hit her like a load of bricks, but steadied herself as she felt Owen's hand rest on her lower back. Blushing, she tried to regain some of her composure.

"Yes, Mr Grady was a consultant working on a project at the velociraptor paddock."

Owen flashed her a smirk as the questions continued.

"And Mr Masrani, is he no longer with us?"

"Are you headed back to Isla Nublar?" another reporter asked.

Sensing the uneasiness in Claire's posture, Owen made his own move to end the press conference for her. "We'll assess the situation and take it from there."

Without another word, he attempted to guide Claire off the small podium and to a guarded section of the dock to have her sit down and regain herself. She followed him without question, enjoying the squeeze of his rough hand on her porcelain skin. As she sat, she noticed he didn't bother to remove it, and her blush deepened the color in her cheeks.

"We need a pilot," Owen told one of the security members, who tipped her head and radioed for someone to bring down a small helicopter for them once the crowds cleared.

The red head stared at Owen, admiring his tough features. The sickening feeling crept further into her as she realized they had many more long hours ahead of them without a second to enjoy the fact that they were still alive.

"Take a picture," he teased, noticing her eyes locked on him. Then, he groaned, sucking in a deep breath.

From the corner of her eye, Claire saw Karen approaching, a hint of urgency in her stance.

"You can't be serious!" she shouted, crossing her arms in front of her petite body.

Claire looked up, feeling her own hand tighten around Owen's, making him cock an eyebrow. "There's still people on that island," she argued her sister.

"I don't care! I just got you back and now you want to put yourself in danger again?!"

Claire could tell how upset she was, but there was nothing she could do – she had persuaded Owen to go back, and she knew Lowery was waiting on them; though she never got along with him that well, he was the only one to stay behind and he had helped her release the T-Rex from Paddock 9, and he deserved to prolong his life.

"If we don't go, Nublar will turn into another Sorna," Owen finally admitted, speaking both of their biggest fears. "Trust me, you don't want another island with a bunch of adapted dinosaurs roaming freely." His hands rested on his hips, where they usual wound up when he got defensive.

"Do you even have a plan?"

"Not yet, but we'll figure it out once we get there."

Karen frowned, but stood her ground. "Then I'm going with you," she deiced.

Claire shot up, releasing Owen's hand immediately. "No! Zach and Gray need you. Are you crazy?!"

"Crazy seems to run in the family," she snapped back.

Claire glared at her sister, but Owen shrugged. "There's no saying no to these women, is there?" he muttered under his breath. Then, he rolled up his sleeves and ran a hand through his hair in defeat. "Look, I'm not gonna stop you, but if you don't stick close and listen to what I say, you won't make it half a day on that island," he warned.

Karen swallowed silently, realizing the threat of the situation she had gotten herself into. In a matter of hours, she would see first-hand what her boys had survived, and that was all that mattered.


End file.
